and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: the federal government moved another day closer today to $85 billion in automatic spending cuts. and as political charges and counter-charges flew, federal reserve chief ben bernanke raised new fears about the potential economic fallout. the fed chairman told a senate committee that forcing across-the-board spending cuts could slice half a percentage point off economic growth. >> i think an appropriate balance would be to introduce these cuts more gradually and to compensate with larger and more sustained cuts in the longer run to address our long-run fiscal issues. >> ifill: bernanke said the sequester was supposed to be a doomsday weapon designed to spur compromise. >> it was done to be sort of like dr. strangelove, you know, the bomb that goes off. so obviously if you can find a way to, you know, in a bipartisan way to make it more effective and better prioritized, that would be a good thing. >> ifill: instead the spending cuts could begin to take effect at wee